Hunter found alive after 19 days in Calif. forest

The Associated Press

Posted:
10/13/2013 12:36:52 PM PDT

Updated:
10/13/2013 06:53:56 PM PDT

UKIAH, Calif.—A San Francisco man who was missing in the Mendocino National Forest for 19 days after he slipped and lost consciousness in steep terrain has been rescued and is in surprisingly good condition.

The Ukiah Daily Journal reported Sunday ( http://bit.ly/GY9aaC) that 72-year-old Gene Penaflor survived in the Yuki Wilderness by eating squirrels, lizards, a snake, berries and algae and covering himself with leaves to stay warm.

Mendocino County Sheriff's Det. Andrew Porter tells the newspaper that Penaflor had been missing since Sept. 24 when he failed to meet up with his hunting partner for lunch.

A four-day search that started the next day was called off after no clues to his whereabouts surfaced.

Another group of hunters stumbled upon the missing man Saturday and carried him out of the forest.